I am having the same issue. Nothing resolves the issue. Different network, system restart, factory reset all don't help. I've even tried to cover the front with electrical tape to eliminate the chance of a rogue IR signal. Still pauses on its own. This happens on multiple channels at random times.
nope, no luck
now it unpredictably restarts. sometimes midplay, sometimes immediately when I choose an app.
Clearly this is systemic. We replaced our last Roku Express with a new one, I can’t recall why. Some intermittent error like the pausing described here. The new one does exactly what everyone here describes. Out of the box. We’ve had it for probably a year now and it hasn’t changed. I can see no pattern. It doesn’t bug me too much, so I live with it. We’ll probably replace our Roku with a competing device. Not sure which yet. The express is inexpensive enough, and I’d be happy to pay more for an upgraded Roku, but I don’t need the 4k and I have no guarantee that the new system won’t suffer the same issues.
just wanted to add another data point. This is a real issue.